THE
State Employees Association of North Carolina, SEIU Local 2008 1621 Midtown Place, Raleigh, NC • www.seanc.org 800-222-2758 • 919-833-6436 • Circulation 55,000
March 2014
• Vol. 32, Issue 4
SEANC Presses Lawmakers on Raises for All By Jonathan Owens
SEANC Asst. Communications Director
Much has been said in the media about pay raises for teachers in North Carolina, but SEANC is working hard to ensure that all state employees and retirees receive a boost in pay. Though the General Assembly reconvenes in May, SEANC Executive Director Dana Cope and the Legislative Affairs team have already laid the groundwork for a pay increase and continue to have talks with state leaders. Cope, Legislative Affairs Director Ardis Watkins and General Counsel Tom Harris met in late January with Gov. Pat McCrory and his budget team at the Governor’s Mansion to discuss state employee and retiree pay raises and cost-of-living adjustments, as well as SEANC’s retirement system investigation and workplace safety. SEANC’s team has also met with leadership in both the N.C. House and Senate to discuss funding the raises. Delegates at the 2013 SEANC Convention voted to instruct staff to make compensation the top priority in the upcoming legislative session. “In working with the state’s leaders, we are optimistic there will be raises this year,” Cope said. Though Gov. McCrory touted giving
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What is the Salary Adjustment Fund?
Gov. Pat McCrory announced in January that more than 3,000 state employees would receive pay increases from the salary adjustment fund this year in an effort to reduce turnover in state government. Funds for these raises were included in last year’s budget and in no way affect SEANC’s 3-percent pay raise request for all state employees and retirees in this year’s session of the General Assembly, which convenes in May. The salary adjustment fund is used to address market conditions and bring pay for certain state jobs closer to the salaries being paid in the private sector. Salary adjustment funds will be used for employees who assumed greater job responsibilities but have not been compensated accordingly. Funds are also used to lessen the wage disparity between similarly qualified employees who are performing comparable duties. The announcement marked the first time in six years the state has been able to give raises from this fund due to economic instability. The salary adjustment fund was last used in 2007 under Gov. Bev Perdue. In all, 3,221 state employees will get an average 4.2 percent salary increase. Approximately 1,200 nurses and 600 law enforcement employees will receive increases up to 4 percent, while the remainder of employees will receive varying increases of up to 10 percent. — By Jonathan Owens more than 3,000 state employees raises with money from the salary adjustment fund, there are more than 90,000 state employees who could all use a raise after five years of increasing prices and little change in their paychecks. State employees have seen only a modest 1.2-percent increase in pay in the last five years. Cope told The News & Observer recently that while SEANC supports
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raising employee salaries closer to market rates through the salary adjustment fund, it continues to push legislators to give all state employees and retirees a 3-percent boost in their paychecks. SEANC will continue to advocate for fair pay for all state employees and retirees. jowens@seanc.org, Twitter @jonbowens
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